Raster image processing (RIP) is the process of translating digital image data into bit-mapped device-ready data or raster bits for rendering. Such image data is generally embodied in one of a number of different page description languages (PDLs) such as Printer Control Language (PCL)®, Portable Document Format (PDF)®, or PostScript (PS)® but can also appear as stand-alone images such as JPEG or TIFF files. In the printing field, RIP is commonly used by print shops to print jobs or documents on a printing press. To this end, print shop administers must generally configure RIP resources to RIP PCL, PS, or PDF documents as well as JPEG, TIFF, or EPS images. A RIP resource can be implemented in hardware or software.
One or more RIP resources configured to work on a particular print job can be referred to as a pipeline. When a pipeline consists of multiple RIP resources, the respective resources may be implemented across any number of computing devices. A pipeline may be configured to RIP documents of more than a single print data type at a time but are typically configured to RIP a single print data type at a time. Configuring and reconfiguring RIP resources across various pipelines can be a common activity in print shop environments. This is because print shop workflows can change from hour-to-hour, day-to-day, and so on.
For example, a print shop may need to process a large PDF print job in the morning, a number of PS print jobs in the afternoon, and a number of PCL print jobs during the night. Moreover, while large numbers of PDF jobs are being processed, there may be a few other jobs that still need to be processed in parallel. In this example, all or some amount of the total available RIP resources need to be assigned to a pipeline in the morning to RIP the large PDF job, some amount of the available RIP resources need to be assigned to a pipeline in the afternoon to RIP the PS jobs, and some amount of the available RIP resources need to be assigned to a pipeline at night to RIP each of the PCL jobs. In any one of these scenarios, the actual amount of RIP power that is required by any one pipeline is a function not only of the total amount or RIP resources that are available at that time, but also a function of numerous other criteria. Such criteria include, for example, the respective print job sizes, speed at which the print jobs need to be processed, current RIP projects, anticipated and unanticipated print shop workflow, and so on.
Unfortunately, configuring pipelines with RIP resources can be a time consuming and laborious process that can substantially impede print shop throughput. For example, it is common for printing presses to sit idle until such pipeline configuration is complete. In view of this, systems and techniques to configure/reconfigure pipelines with appropriate RIP resources in an efficient manner are greatly desired to enhance print shop workflow.